Bag-closing mechanism.



J.' ROGERS.' BAG GLOSINGMIGHANISM. APPLICATION rILnn 1101.2;190'1;

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UNITED lsTATEs PATENT oEEioE.

JOHN ROGERS, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO GUSTAV E. KAPPL'ER AND GEORGE D. ADAMS, BOTH AOF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

BAG-CLOSING- MEGHANISM.

Speci'icati'ori of Letters Patent.

Patented sept. 29, 190s.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, JOHN ROGERS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bag- Closing Mechanism, of whichthe following is a specification.

The present invention relates to mechanism, forclosing the mouth of an open-ended ,bag, and gathering it into a neck preparatory to its being wrapped and tied with a cord. Its object is to provide mechanism for flattening and gathering into a neck the mouthof a filled bag; and also to adapt said mechanism for use in connection with a slidable bag tying device, such, for example, as the tier shown and described in my applicationfor patent iiled June 20, 1907, and serially numbered 379,868.

A further Objectis to adapt bag closing and gathering mechanism for use in conjunction with any suitable form of conveyer for carrying filled bags thereto.

To these ends my present invention is embodied in a self-contained structure, and

consists in the features and combinations hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which i Figure I is a plan mechanism in its open position ready to receive or to release a bag. Fig. II is a plan view of the same 4with a closed and gathered bag therein. Fig. III is a front elevation of the machine showing the iiattened mouth vof a bag therein. Fig. IV is a detailed side elevation illustrating the operation of the bag flattening means.

The reference letter a indicates the frame of the machine, which is provided upon its ulpper portion with supporting guideways for t e slidable carriage c, so that the latter is movable forward and backward.

b indicatesk a ,filled bag to be closed, and

also tied, but the tyingoperation forms nol -partof my present invention, except as to means for engaging thebag with a suitable tying device after the bag has been closed and gathered for receiving it.

It will be noted thatthe front of the frame a is carried up vertically from the iioor, thus adapting the machine for use in connection Vwith, a conveyer for carrying filled bags to it, and away from it, if desired, the bag resting upon the conveyer during the operation view of the bag closing of the machine. Or, in case a conveyer is not employed, the filled bag is brought by other means to the front of the machine, and supported upon the floor, or upon a raised support, as may be required.

.It will be obvious to a skilled mechanic that the carriage c may be reciprocated forward and back at certain intervals in connection with other mechanism, but since it is not necessary to a proper disclosure of my present invention that such other mechanism be illustrated herein, I have shown a lhand-lever d for reciprocating said carriage.

The lever d is fixed upon a rotatable shaft c having a bearing in the frame a, and provided with a spur toothed pinion f in mesh with a rack on the under si de of the carriage c, which is a well known way for reciprocatingslidable carriages. Said carriage is provided with several cross braces, as shown, and a rod g having a rearward bend in its middle spans its forward end. Another rod 71, is su ported upon said carriage above and paralle with the rod g.

A pair of brackets i project upward from the front end of the carriage c, one upon each side, `and support a hinge rod y'. Hinged upon the rod y, and respectively adjacent to the said brackets, is a pair of arms 7c tied together at their outer extremities by a rod t, Figs. I and III and bearing another rod m,

thus forming a swinging frame. A pair of oppositely disposed brackets 'n are lsecured to the frame a, and connecting rods o between the brackets n and the arms k respectively compel the depression of the said swinging frame as the carriage c advances,

and serve to raise said frame when the said carriage recedes. Thus, said swinging frame k operates to flatten the bag-mouth between its rods Z and m, and the rods g and h of the carriage c.

Rotatably supported in suitable bearings g upon the rear end of the carriage cis a shaft p, the section of which between its bearings is screw threaded, having a right handed thread upon one half of said section, and a left handedl thread upon the other half, as shown. This shaft may be driven forward and backward during the requisite intervals in any suitable way, either in connection with other mechanism or independently, as may be desired; but I have shown means for driving it comprisinga belt pulley r running one way, anda similar pulley s running yopmeans,

'to swing down the flattening positely, both pulleys being loose upon the shaft, and a slidable clutch member 't splined to the shaft and adapted to be thrown into engagement with either r or s, or out of engagement with both pulleys. A pair of nuts u are litted respectively to the right and left handed threads of the shaft p. A pair of gathering lingers i) are fulerumed at their rearward ends to the carriage c adjacent to the middle of one of its cross braces. A pair of levers z are fulcrumed near their middle points to the same cross brace of the carriage c, and have their rearward ends operatively connected respectively to the nuts u. Connecting links x join the forward ends of the levers z to the middle sections of the lingeis o respectively.

A pair of guide bars 2 are slidably mounted upon the rods j and m,.and carry respectively the gathering grips y, which are brackets having curved lateral extensions, and are oppositely disposed with their concave sides facing inward. A pair of guide rods 3 project outward from the grips y, passing loosely through apertures in the respective arms lc, and extending parallel with the rods j and m. A pair of slidable bars 4 have bearings respectively in the swinging ends of the arms 7c and guide bearings 5 upon the bar l, said bars l extending parallel with the rods 3, and having their end portions bent at right angles and secured to the outer ends of the said rods 3, as shown at 6 so that a pair of frames are formed slidable upon the rods y', m and l of the swinging frame, and carr ing respectively the-gathering grips y. For operating said gathering frames, a notch 7 is formed in the under edge of the inner end of each of the bars 4, and said notches are located in position to receive respectively the end portions of the lingers o, when the earriage c advances and the flattening frame swings downward.

A suitable pair of guides 8, see Figs. I and II, are secured. upon the carriage c, their purpose being to support and guide a slidable bag tier, which latter is indicated by the dotted outline fw. A pair of bars 9 are connected together at their ends by a pin l0, and their other ends are operatively connected respectively to the nuts u, so as to form a toggle-joint. A connecting bar l1 has a slot at its rear end engaging the pin 10, and its forward end is adapted to be attached to the tier w, so as to slide the latter.

In operation the machine starts from its position of rest shown in Fig. I, after a lilled bag l) has been properly placed Ain front of it by any suitable means. The carriage c is hrst moved forward by the lever d, or other and held in the position shown in and III. This movement operates frame /c from the position shown in Fig. I and in dotted lines in Fig. IV, to that shown in Figs. II and i Figs. II

III and by full lines in Fig. Il", thus flattening the bag mouth between the rods Z and ym, and the rods g and t. In this position the lingers o engage in the notches 7 respectively. The clutch t is then thrown into with the pulley s, thereby rotating the shaft p to carry the nuts u outward, which forces the fingers o and the gathering grips y toward each other respectively. This latter movement continues, and the flattened bag mouth is gathered into a neck between the said lingers and grips, until the position shown in Fig. II is reached, whereupon the clutch t is released from the pulley s. As the nuts yu. move outward, the pin 1() traverses the slot in the bar 11 until the bag mouth is partly gathered, but, before the movement ceases, the said. pin reaches the forward end of the slot and slides the tier w forward. between the bars g and 71 and over the neck of the bag. The tier then operates while the bag neck is held as in Fig. II, after which the clutch 1i is engaged with the pulley 7^ to open the lingers and grips and slide back the tier. rl`he carriage e is linally thrown back, which raises the flattening frame, so that the bag may be removed, and another bag substituted to be operated upon in the same way. ',lllus, it is evident that the mechanism may be operated independently, or in connection with a conveyer, or other mecliafnism, since no ob struction is oll'ered. to the ingress and egress of a lilled bag to its position before the .machine, and because the clutch t, and also the carriage c, may be operated either by handl or by means connected with other mechanism. 'It will be notedv further that any suitable forni of tier may be employed upon this machine, and thrown into operation, if desired, by its forward movement as provided for herein.

I further point out and distinctly claim as my inventionl. In a bag closing mechanism, the combination of a reciprocating carriage, a bag l lattening frame hinged to the forward end of said carriage, and means whereby said frame is swung towards or away from :aid carriage according as the latter is respectively ad.- vanced or withdrawn, substantially as set forth.

2. In a bag closing mechanism, the combination with a supporting structure and. a reciprocating carriage thereon, of a bag flattening frame hinged to and depending from the forward end of said carriage, and operative connection between said frame and said structure adapted to lower said frame as said carriage advances and to raise said frame as said carriage ieeedes, substantially as set forth.

3. In a bag closing mechanism, the combination of a reciprocating carriage, a bag llatitening frame arranged to approach or recede 'rom engagement 'f' the forward end of said. carriage acil (l bag flattening cording to the movements of the latter, a pair of gathering grips oppositely disposed upon said frame, and means for intercepting and operating said grips while said carriage and frame are closed together, substantially as set forth.

4. In a bag closing mechanism, the combi# nation with a reciprocating carriage having a frame operative in conjunction therewith, of a pair of gathering fingers hinged to said carriage, and a pair of gathering grips upon said frame operative in connection wit said fingers, substantially as set forth. A

5. In a bag closing mechanism, the combination with a reciprocating carriage having a bag attening frame arranged to open from and close towards its forward end, of a pair of gathering fingers hinged to said carriage, a pair of Vgathering grips slidably mounted upon said frame, and means whereby said fingers and said grips are'operatively connected u on the closing' of said flattening frame, su stantially as set forth.

6. In a bag closing mechanism, the combination with a slidable carriage having one or more cross bars at its forward end, a frame hinged to the forward end of said carriage having corresponding cross bars, and means for swlnging said frame towards said carriage as the latter advances, of fingers hinged to said carriage, gathering grips guided upon said frame, and means for closing said ngers and said grips ina direction parallel to said cross bars, substantially as set forth.

7 In a bag closing mechanism, the combination with a slidable carriage having one or more cross bars at its forward end, a frame hinged to the forward end of said carriage having corresponding cross bars, and means for swinging said frame towards said carriage as the latter advances, of fingers hinged to said carriage, means for closing said lingers between and in a direction parallel to said cross bars, and means upon said carriage for supporting and for reciprocating a tying device in a direction at right angles to said cross bars, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses at Oleve1and,'Ohio, this 29th day of October, 1907'.

JOHN ROGERS. Witnesses:

F. W. LANGIN,

R. B. HoPrER. 

